Middlemiss named NPSL Player of the Year

In 2003, playing for the Arcata High Tigers, Ross Middlemiss was co-Most Valuable Player of the Humboldt-Del Norte League's boys soccer teams.

Five years later, he had a superb senior year playing for Sonoma State, scoring 18 goals and passing for nine assists in 24 games.

As a result, he was the Daktronics NCAA Division II West Region Player of the Year, and the California Collegiate Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year. ESPN The Magazine named Middlemiss to its Academic First Team All-America team, making him the only player west of the Mississippi on its 11-member team.

Well, the honors keep coming.

Last month, following a season in which he scored 14 goals and passed for seven assists in 16 games -- and averaged 84 minutes per game on the pitch -- for the Sonoma County Sol, Middlemiss was selected as the National Premier Soccer League's (NPSL) Player of the Year.

The Sol (12-1-3) played in the recent NPSL national championship match, falling 2-0 to RVA FC (10-0-2) on Aug. 4 in Richmond, Va.

"I've been fortunate to be in these situations, playing with great teams," said Middlemiss. "For me the big thing is that the coaches and captains gave their recognition, and they had faith in the team."

Although Middlemiss was informed before the Sol's final match that he was his team's nominee for national Player of the Year, he was not expecting to win it.

First of all, his team lost the title match, and secondly, the NPSL has 59 clubs in its four divisions -- Northeast, South, Midwest, West -- so Middlemiss had plenty of competition for national honors.

It's his fourth year playing for the Sol, a Santa Rosa-based soccer team. Middlemiss played overseas previously with the German club TSG Thannhausen, and in the Netherlands.

Since his time at Sonoma State, Middlemiss' hard work has paid dividends as his game has expanded.

"The versatility in my game has evolved. I was certainly not the fastest player at Sonoma. My speed, bursts of speed, has improved, and also the mental game. The preparation, dealing with the ups and downs, and trying to stay level," said Middlemiss, who turns 27 on Sept. 25.

Middlemiss knows being named national Player of the Year may provide him with the opportunity for a try-out for a higher level soccer club. If that happens, he is up for the challenge.

"I have the ambition to play at another level. My motivation is still there, the fire," said Middlemiss.